Posts Tagged ‘Gravel’
Pre-race Meeting: The Mid South Gravel Race
Coach Adam Mills of Source Endurance discusses how to prepare and ride the Mid South Gravel Race
Read More2024 Rock Cobbler Pre-Race Briefing
Coach Adam discusses best strategies for Rock Cobbler. Everything from course features to aid station strategy. Even equipment review like, “is there a tire that works equally well in both MUD and LIVING ROOM CARPET?” Find out those answers and more! How much can coaching help you improve? How much can coaching help you improve?
Read MoreGravel Aid Station Strategy for Racing: Interwoven Variables
Improving your gravel aid station strategy is key to furthering your success
Read MoreDehydration Drives DNFs at Gravel Races
The primary reason that athletes did not finish (DNF) gravel races was due to dehydration and complications that arise from it.
Read MoreUnbound Gravel: Kelly Bastman Tells Her Kansas Experience Story
This was my first Unbound Gravel so I had no idea what to expect. This is a story of my adventure in the Flint Hills of Kansas.
Read MoreBWR as Seen Through the NoFcks Given Gravel Lens
Source Endurance athlete Casey Cohenmeyer gives us her colorful recap of the Belgian Waffle Ride California
Read MoreMid South: Becoming Faster and More Spicy
The quality of the athletes at the pointy end of races like the Mid South has dramatically improved. Gone are the days where local heroes battle it out for glory amongst the rare traveler from far away lands. The time is now and the races resemble more of a Monument than they do a gravel race.
Read MoreEthan Doherty 2022: Road Racer Targets CX Nationals Podium
Ethan’s training emphasis has been on aerobic foundation and extending Time to Exhaustion (TTE) at threshold. This year, we decided to take a different approach that landed Ethan on the CX Nationals podium.
Read MoreGravel Worlds: Comparing Jay Thomas’ Championship in 2012 to 2022
The year is 2012 and Jay Thomas is a young 43 years of age and newly minted Gravel Worlds Champion. Even though he is officially an “aging athlete” Jay was very much holding his peak form from his mid-30’s. Jay came home with a victory, brand new rainbow-ish striped jersey, a sabre* and the swagger of a Gravel Worlds Champion. The winning time was 9 hours and 6 minutes.
Read MoreAlex Hoehn: SBT GRVL 5th. A Closer Look at the Power of Fatigue Resistance
The legendary races of cycling all tell a similar story of overcoming adversity through beautiful suffering. At its core, this very romanticization is excellent at engaging fans while inspiring all of us to persevere through hard work. This suffering is universal across all competitors and it seems like the only difference is if one suffers…
Read MoreZack Allison’s BWR North Carolina Race Recap
BWR North Carolina, for me, for my race day, actually started when we left Kansas after Unbound. It was a pretty crazy set of travel days with Whitney getting Giardia and massive lightning storms each night we stopped with the camper, causing a lack of recovery/body work going into North Carolina. Thank goodness for…
Read MoreTackling the Hell of the East (Coast)
Just six short weeks after the first Belgian Waffle Ride in San Diego, the second stop of the Quadrupel Crown of Gravel took place. This time the traveling gravel circus took roots in the East Coast, somewhere about 30 miles south of Asheville, North Carolina along the border of South Carolina. BWR North Carolina was…
Read MorePreparing for the Hell of the North (Carolina)
It’s been about one month since Belgian Waffle Ride (BWR) California and now North Carolina is right around the corner. I thought I would have a solid window to prepare for what’s to come at the next BWR but honestly, I’ve been on a crit racing calendar, so the preparation is, well, being handled differently.…
Read MoreHow to Avoid DNFing the BWR
Many begin an epic adventure like the one you’ve just embarked upon expecting moderate discomfort and glory to await us, but only the most prepared will triumph over the Belgian Waffle Ride. Although the numbers are not public, we know a high percentage of riders never cross the finish line and get their own ride…
Read MoreTackling the Dubbel Header
For those of you uninitiated to the Dubbel Header, the concept is simple; race the Waffle ride on Saturday and turn around and race the Wafer on Sunday. Easy enough? Ha! The Waffle ride was 135+ miles long, sure to be my longest ride of the year and the Wafer was 75 miles, yet still…
Read MoreEpilogue and Epitaph of a Glorious BWR Finish
Epiligue an Epitaph of a Glorious BWR Finish Evolution doesn’t always occur incrementally. Sometimes change is sudden, surprising and painful. The Belgian Waffle Ride has always been different. Different is challenging; it’s new; it’s unique. Then, for 4 years the course did not change substantially. Yes, there were small tweaks but nothing that affected overall…
Read MoreThe Best Tire for the Belgian Waffle Ride CA (San Diego)
The Best Tire for the Belgian Waffle Ride CA (San Diego) Monuments are generally considered to be the oldest, hardest and most prestigious one day races on the professional circuit and winning one can immortalize an athlete in the annals of history. As such, Monuments define spring racing success in the professional ranks, dictating future…
Read MoreBWR Kansas: An Insider’s Guide to Lawrence
Make the most of Lawrence, KS Source Endurance owner and coach Adam Mills spent many years living in Lawrence, Kansas, and is a Kansas native. Here are some of his favorites from one of his favorite places: You registered for BWR KS and if you’re like many people, you’ve probably never been to Lawrence unless…
Read More10 Tips and Tricks for Fueling for Long Gravel Races & How to Maintain Stamina in the Heat and Dirt
Race Day Nutrition Plan Mass start, dust up the nose, endless climbs, stretches of desolate scenery, clock ticking. Gravel races are sweeping the hearts of cyclists across the country for the opportunity to complete something epic, try something new, enjoy beautiful scenery, and challenge oneself. As one of the newer disciplines of cycling, racers are…
Read MoreBelgian Waffle Ride Cedar City: Course Musings
Photo: Jake Orness The folks at Monuments of Cycling wanted a weekend of proper reconnaissance and feedback on the finalized Belgian Waffle Ride Cedar City course. A few of us made the trek with the mindset of learning what this course was all about and how it felt at speed. What follows is my initial…
Read MoreDon’t Compromise on your Gravel/ Everything Bike- You Don’t Need to.
“When it comes to gravel, play it as it lies” – Joseph Schmalz Gravel bikes are not limited by any national governing body in any way. Therefore they are not restricted by any rules for equipment the likes of which are in the 49 page UCI equipment rules and regulations. By any logical discussion, cycling…
Read MoreGravel Bikes are Pruning the Bicycle Tree of Evolution
As life began to fill every corner of the globe, it has become adapted to each area. Every environmental niche has an organism that is perfectly suited to it. That sort of evolution is exactly what we expect from life. It’s also what have come to expect as we become more adventurous in our ever-expanding…
Read MoreChoosing a Tire for Your Next Gravel Adventure
“Hey… what’s the best tire for this event?” That’s something I’ve been hearing a lot over the last few months as more and more mixed surface and gravel events come on the calendar. I remember back to my full time cyclo-cross (CX) days riding with the KCCX team and all the conversations we had about…
Read MoreNutrition for the Canyon Belgian Waffle Ride
This years’ Canyon Belgium Waffle Ride is shaping up to be another great event. With a growing field of over 500 Riders in the Waffle Ride, and nearly the same amount in the Wafer Ride, the competition will be fierce. The sheer act of completing this event will be a feat, but how you finish…
Read MoreAll about that gravel endurance training…
When Neil Shirley and I started discussing his 2018 goals I did most of the listening. When a legend such as Neil takes his time to reach out and discuss his goals and ask for guidance to meet those goals it means a few things: Neil is focused and no longer satisfied with just finishing,…
Read MoreBelgian Waffle Ride Survival Camp 3.0 Recap Day 1
The Belgian Waffle Ride Survival Camp 3.0 ran January 12-14, 2018, for three days of course reconnaissance of the BWR course. Check out our photo journal from Day 1. All photos are by DMunson Photo. Day 1: Riders arrive, get settled and check in. They also get ready for ride #1, an easy 2-hour ride.…
Read MoreRider Highlight: Joseph Schmalz podiums at Red Dog 100 Men's Open
Joseph Schmalz, pro rider for Elevate KHS Pro Cycling Team, has been dabbling in some gravel events this fall including a recent podium at Red Dog 100 Men’s Open in Jefferson City, MO, where his team went 1-2! (Podium shot by James Joe Froese). Check out his story below: Red Dog 100 Men’s Open Course…
Read MoreCanyon Belgian Waffle Ride Survival Camp 3.0 coming January 2018!
The Belgian Waffle Ride is quickly becoming one of the most well-known and most-sought after gravel events in the country. The BWR offers this growing and special breed the type of experience that requires months, if not years, to train for adequately, while requiring technical bike handling skills and, more importantly, the right equipment and nutrition…
Read MoreSE Coach Zack Allison shares his first BWR & Unbound experience
SE coach Zack Allison recently competed in his first Belgian Waffle Ride and Unbound Gravel (previously DK200) He primarily races criteriums with Clif Bar Racing so competing in both these events in the middle of his season required some focused and tailored training. At Unbound Gravel he rode with the support of Niner Bikes, which called…
Read MoreBWR Survival Camp: Meet Mentor Janel Holcomb
Janel Holcomb began her cycling career in a way most of us only dream of…she picked up a bike in 2006, started racing in 2007 and was racing professionally in Europe by 2008. We interviewed her recently as we have the honor of having her as a mentor at our upcoming Cervelo Belgian Waffle Ride…
Read MoreWhat Science Says about Nutrition for Long Distance Gravel Events
As we rapidly approach the big weekend of the Unbound Gravel, amidst an array of other long distance gravel events, there are a few important components to putting together a successful ride. Arguably the two most important factors that a person has the ability to change and control is the training component and then a…
Read MoreSweeping the Podium at LandRun 100 and Rage Against the Chainring
For the past two weekends Bob Cummings and the Panaracer/Stan’s NoTubes p/b Bicycle X-Change team, also sponsored by Source Endurance have engineered a clean podium sweep first at the Land Run 100 followed by Rage Against the Chainring. First of all, full credit is due to the fitness of the team, the sound team tactics as…
Read MoreWhy Gravel?
At the tender age of 15, I ran my first and last marathon. Mostly on a dare, but also because I was a runner at the time, I lined up for the 1984 Macy’s Marathon in Kansas City and at the conclusion of the race (which took longer than I care to admit) I swore…
Read MoreBWR: Equipment Choices
Now that we’ve read about the Belgian Waffle Ride and what physiological challenges to expect, let’s talk about the equipment challenges of such an event. Unless you’re coming from a mountain bike background, the discussion of equipment challenges is a bit of a foreign topic. One of the biggest equipment considerations for a road racer…
Read MoreThe Greatest Monument of Cycling in the US
Hello, my name is Michael Marckx and I love waffles and all things Belgian. I also love riding my bike a long way and drinking Belgian ales directly after. I’m Flemish; we’re just odd that way. Being Flemish and growing up with an affinity for the culinary delights and ethnic characteristics of the Belgians,…
Read MoreBWR Survival Camp, What to Expect
The Belgian Waffle Ride is a classic adventure that challenges the young, old, strong and stronger in ways many veteran bike riders can’t begin to comprehend. We had a couple clients at the 2015 edition and based on their data, we expect the following output from the day. 7-9 hours of pedaling covering 140…
Read MoreTis the Season, for Gravel. What does it take?
Tis’ the season, for gravel. But what does it take? The recent surge in popularity of gravel events over the past few years has my mind reeling. People are coming out of the woodwork ready to slay their own bodies over thousands of miles of gravel, in the dark, in the cold, and even when…
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